Services
Helping you find the best locations and sites for new corporate facilities
Approach
Our approach covers all important aspects of selecting a location.
We provide a comprehensive approach, starting with evaluating a large number of location alternatives through to selecting a specific property and securing government incentives. Our full approach is outlined in the table below.
Objective
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Obtain clear understanding of project goals, parameters and drivers
Activities &
results
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Confirm project drivers
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Define location criteria and metrics
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Weight location criteria
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Determine longlist of locations
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Prepare project workplan
Key
deliverables
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Project plan with defined geographic scope, criteria, weights and timing
Note: in projects with large property requirements, site selection starts before or at the same time as location analysis.
The typical project duration for the full process is between six to nine months, although we can accelerate this if required. We liaise with other departments in your company (e.g. real estate, tax, human resources, government affairs) as well as important external stakeholders that are involved in the location decision. We can work alongside internal teams or service providers that are focusing on other aspects of your expansion (e.g. identifying M&A options, facility design).
For clients that do not require support with the entire process, we can assist with specific areas of location analysis and site selection.
Location strategy
Setting up a new facility is a strategic decision that aligns with your company’s overall global location strategy.
We can help you to develop a balanced location footprint by reviewing the suitability and risk exposure of your existing locations and assessing the impact of diversifying or consolidating your geographic presence. This includes identifying emerging locations that meet your requirements and evaluating the risks of entering new geographies.
In some cases, establishing a new facility may not be the best option for expansion. We can help you to compare the costs and benefits of a greenfield investment with alternatives such as outsourcing, acquisition, or expansion of an existing facility.
Site evaluation
Evaluating a specific site (a building or piece of land) involves a completely different set of factors than comparing locations such as countries or cities.
For new manufacturing plants, overlooking site-related risks can delay a project by months or even years. For projects involving new offices, selecting the right property can have a huge impact on your ability to recruit and retain talent and effectively serve your clients.
We can conduct a detailed analysis of site-specific factors such as zoning and permitting, site ownership and acquisition procedures, environmental and building constraints, transportation infrastructure, supply of electricity and other utilities, and other issues that will affect the feasibility and cost of establishing a new facility.
We can work with other service providers such as architectural and engineering firms that are conducting technical site analysis on your behalf.
Workforce analysis
Finding employees with the right background and skills is essential for the success of your new operation.
We can conduct a detailed analysis of workforce availability and costs, focused on the specific profiles that you intend to employ. We also assess labor market dynamics such as competition among employers and the preferences of graduates and employees with respect to new employers. Our analysis provides you with accurate data on workforce costs that takes into account non-wage benefits and the resources required for recruiting and training.
Since accurate labor market information is typically not available online, we speak with local sources such as recruiting firms, universities, and workforce development agencies to obtain recent and reliable data that reflects current labor market conditions.
Investment incentives
Incentives can reduce your capital expenditure and operating costs.
Incentives can be available at all levels of government (national, regional and local), and are extremely diverse in terms of the type and level of benefits provided. This ranges from cash grants and tax breaks to support with employee training and site infrastructure development.
Depending on your requirements and project parameters, we can integrate incentives into the entire project, which includes conducting an initial screening of locations based on incentives potential and assessing the benefits that may be available to your project.
Later in the process, we can support or lead discussions with governments and other stakeholders, evaluate the feasibility and performance requirements of incentives offers, and help you submit the required project plans and applications required to secure incentives.
Facility closure
Closing a facility can be as complex and costly as opening a new one and few companies have contingency plans for exiting a location.
We can help you address important aspects of closing a facility, such as communication with economic development agencies and other government entities, positioning the closure with local stakeholders, and reducing the risk of incentives clawbacks. We can also identify potential new users or buyers for your facility and manage the process of contacting and engaging with them.
We typically work with your legal counsel and government relations teams to ensure that your exit from a location conforms with all local regulations and your overall communications strategy.
